Tale of the Well
by Bloodie Ash
Summary: Cursed and sent to another world young Alaina must team up with four Inuyasha characters to travel the network of wells to find their way to their respective places.


I tried not to faint as I looked around. I was in what could only be described as a large ballroom, with gold coated walls and a high ceiling. The women were dressed in floor length gowns in an array of colors with big silk foldable fans to cover the bottom of their faces. The men however were dressed in old fashioned suits with just as many colors as the women's dresses. Everyone wore a mask. I suppressed a delighted squeal. I was at a masquerade party. I loved masquerades, especially the masks they had. I continued to look around weaving my way in and out of dancing or talking couples. I had just one problem, which really wasn't much of a problem. How had I gotten here? I'd been walking home from the mall and had been forced to make a small deter. This had led me to stumble upon a small wishing well. I had fallen inside when I tried to retrieve a flyer I was going to show my foster brother. When I woke up I had climbed out of the well, which had no water at the bottom, and found myself in the courtyard of whatever building I was now in.

I spotted a young girl who was not only not wearing a mask, but looked familiar as well. It was Rin from Inuyasha! I didn't see any of the people who were usually around her. No Sesshomaru, no Kohaku, and thank the gods no Jaken. I maneuvered my way over to Rin who was looking around with an expression of wonder. "Hey little one. Did you get separated from your parents?" I asked her nicely. Rin looked up with a glare as if she was mad at me for calling her little one.

"I'm not little one, I'm Rin. I got separated from Sesshomaru and Kohaku." She answered hands on her hips. I smiled at her trying hard not to laugh.

"And who are Sesshomaru and Kohaku?" I asked though I was much more concerned with where were they. Rin looked confused.

"Sesshomaru is Sesshomaru and Kohaku is Kohaku." She answered as if it should have been obvious. I sighed. Well her answer didn't really matter since I knew who they were anyway.

"Well than let's go find them. I'm sure they're worried about you." I said offering Rin my hand. She took it.

We had barely taken a step when we were stopped. "A girl of marrying age with no mask and no husband. This is scandalous! And those clothes!" A rather noisy woman shouted as she approached us. Her ball gown was a baby blue and her mask was an old fashioned one on a stick that you had to hold up to your face. The mask was a darker blue than her dress with a large peacock feather jutting up from one side.

I looked down at my clothes wondering what was wrong with them. I wore a dark red tube top under a black leather jacket, jeans, black fingerless gloves, and converse. "I'm sorry ma'am. I'm visiting from far away and didn't know masks were required." I lied trying to process her words. Masks required for single women of marrying age. That sounded really familiar.

"Do you not have money to buy a mask for the masquerade?" The woman asked her voice becoming concerned.

"Only foreigners' currency which my father kept." I lied again. The woman was now staring at me with deep sympathy.

"Very well my dear. Follow me." She led me and Rin out of the ballroom and into a room full of masks. "Pick a mask while I find you a dress." And with that Rin and I were left alone in the room of masks.

"What are we doing here?" Rin asked looking around. I could understand why. The walls were blood red with a mask covering just about every inch. There was a bookshelf against one wall with a desk and glass counter towards the middle of the room.

"Finding masks so we can blend in. The more we blend in the less people who will stop us as we search for your Sesshomaru and Kohaku." I answered simply. Rin grinned and ran to one side of the room, picking up a mask that had caught her fancy. It was a mask in the shape of a butterfly fitting Rin's small face perfectly so it looked like a butterfly had perched on her nose and opened its wings. It was a bright orange mask with gold ascents. "Perfect." I told her brightly. She grinned at me.

"Now to find yours." She informed me. It took us close to fifteen minutes to find the right mask. Rin vetoing most of the ones I tried on. Finally I tried on a red and black one. It was shaped with a large round sides that closed around my face so I didn't need a string to keep it on my head. The bulk of the mask was a dark blood red that darkened around the edges becoming black. The inside of the mask was a gold satin like material. "Perfect." Rin told me as the woman in the blue dress came back. She was carrying a blood red corset ball gown in her arms.

"Amazing choice my dear and it matches your dress." She told me. I changed into the ball gown and shoved my regular clothes into my bag. When I came back from changing the woman was looking at me with concern. "My dear is this child your daughter?" she asked casting a sideways glance in Rin's direction. What did she think I was? I didn't even have a boyfriend. Not that I had the time especially during the school year.

"No I found her at the masquerade and was going to help her look for her guardian when you stopped us." This was the first, and most likely only, truth I told the woman in the blue dress. The woman in the blue dress nodded as if she understood my predicament.

"Well I wish you the best of luck. Both in finding a husband and in finding this girl's guardian." I nodded and took Rin's hand.

"Are we reading to find Sesshomaru and Kohaku now?" Rin asked as we slipped back into the ballroom.

"Yes." I answered. Unfortunately it seemed the fates seemed against us going to find Sesshomaru and Kohaku. We were on our way to the ballroom door when something barreled into me.

"What the hell?" I hissed angrily feeling pain radiate from my side where I'd been hit. I looked up to see what had bowled me over and soon realized it was a someone. Koga! "What are you doing here?" I demanded jumping to my feet not even pretending not to know who Koga was like I did with Rin.

"I don't know, it's the mutt's fault." Koga snapped. I rolled my eyes.

"Of course it is." I grumbled. "Come on. We've got to find Rin's Sesshomaru and Kohaku, but then we can start looking for a way home." I said. I of course meant the home of the Inuyasha characters. I wasn't too eager to return to my own home. I would have much rather preferred to stay here in this flowing city of masks and mysteries.

"Why should I come with you?" Koga asked with large amounts of mistrust leaking from his tone.

I shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought maybe if we work together the quicker you can return home." I said simply. It didn't really surprise me how easily the lies slipped past my lips. I lied to my foster mother all the time. Koga nodded as if he could see the logic in my plan. Now that did surprise me. Koga never saw the logic in anything. I guess he really wanted to return to his own time and place to see Kagome again.

Upon exiting the building we found that there were no streets, but instead waterways. In these waterways were long boats, gondolas. I tried not to let my gasp be heard. I had known when I entered the courtyard I was far from where I should have been, however I never would have guessed I was in Venice. Oh how I loved this city. "You alright?" Koga asked thought he didn't sound as if he cared in the least.

"Fine, just appreciating the beauty of this place." I answered. A gondola stopped in front of us.

"Do you need a ride lovely lady?" The gondolier asked.

"Lovely lady?" Koga questioned in surprise. I elbowed him in the ribs.

"Yes thank you." I said politely. The three of us stepped into the gondola though I found it difficult in the big poufy ball gown.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but who are your traveling companion?" The gondolier asked as we started moving through the waterway.

"I don't. They're my brother and sister. We're traveling from a faraway country." I lied. Koga shot me a look that said he didn't approve thought that was more for the lie itself than the fact I lied. I rolled my eyes.

We didn't have much longer to talk before we were attacked. It was of course Sesshomaru and Kohaku. Kohaku moved Rin to the bank while Sesshomaru destroyed the gondola. Gee thanks Sesshomaru. Luckily I'd been trained for stuff like this, even if the ball gown made it hard to move. Everyone stood on one side of the cannel. Koga and I to one side Sesshomaru, Kohaku, and Rin to the other. I didn't have a good feeling about this and wished I was back into my normal clothes that were much easier to battle in. It didn't help I was currently weaponless.

Hello people. This is my first attempt of an Inuyasha story. I'm currently rereading the manga and it's been a few years since I first finished it so if I get anyone out of character please tell me. Also I don't own Inuyasha. So this is my disclaimer.


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